Wagner College ready for NEC basketball road swing

APWagner guard Chris Martin, right, will travel with the Seahawks but not play in the two-game trip (nose surgery).

It’s all about turning the page for Wagner when one of the winningest road teams in the country travels to Sacred Heart (10-11, 4-4 NEC) Thursday night and Quinnipiac (10-9, 3-5 NEC) Saturday afternoon.

The Seahawks, tied for No. 1 in the nation with eight road victories, were defeated 73-66 in last weekend’s super-hyped Spiro Center loss to league-leading LIU-Brooklyn.

But Wagner has yet to lose back-to-back games this season.

The Seahawks, however, are catching a hot team in SHU, winner of three of its last four with all the games decided by three or fewer points.

The key challenge will how the Wagner defense deals with sharp-shooting SHU guard Shane Gibson, who is ranks among the Top 20 deep-shooters in the nation with a 45-percent from 3-point range.

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Wagner, winner of 10 of its last 12 games, currently ranks 14th in the nation in average turnover margin at +4.1 more turnovers forced than committed per game. The Seahawks are also the sixth highest fouling team in America at 22.7 fouls committed per game.

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Siena junior O.D. Anosike racked up yet another double-double in the Saints’ 65-62 victory over league-leading Iona on Monday. The dominating former St. Peter’s HS star and Jaques Award winner now leads the nation in that category with 15. The 6-8 West Brighton product also leads the country in rebounding. He is averaging 14.9 points and 12.7 boards per game.

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This is Wagner’s secret weapon when it comes to jostling for playoff positioning down the stretch of the NEC season:

Five of Wagner’s last six games are against teams with a current combined overall record of 11-68 and an NEC total of 5-27.

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Streaking LIU-Brooklyn, led by burly 6-7 post player Julian Boyd (16.5 ppg, 9.5 rpg), is 8-0 in the league and 14-6 overall. The Blackbirds moved into 21st place in this week’s College Insider mid-major poll, while ending Wagner’s three-week stay in the Top 25.

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Wagner guard Chris Martin (nose surgery) traveled with the team to Connecticut but will not be available to play.